The family of a Rosamond man who they contend was beaten to death by four Kern County Sheriff's deputies in 2010 was awarded $4.5 million in its civil lawsuit against the deputies, the sheriff's department and the County of Kern.​

A jury found Tuesday that the defendants acted negligently, causing the death of Jose Lucero and serious emotional distress to his parents, Florencio and Lilia, who witnessed the confrontation.​

But the county's lawyer contends the use of force was justified and the deputies tried to stop the parents from seeing the incident. The county is considering an appeal. ​

The deputies, Daniel Willis, Ryan Greer, Angelos Gonzalez and Jonathan Juden, are still employed with the sheriff's department, which referred calls to county counsel. The deputies did not face criminal charges in the death.​

On Dec. 18, 2010, sheriff's deputies went to Lucero's home because he had been repeatedly making calls to 911, saying that a friend in Lancaster was being assaulted and murdered, said Los Angeles attorney Michael Curls, who represented the Luceros. ​

Lucero had mental health issues and was a recovering drug addict, Curls said. Prior to that day, he had been recovering well, Curls said. But, during Lucero's autopsy, the coroner's officer found methamphetamine in his system.​

Lucero's official cause of death was cardiac arrest following police restraint in association with methamphetamine intoxication, the coroner's office reported in March 2011.​

Law enforcement was justified in going to Lucero's house after the repeated and delusional 911 calls, Curls said. But after they arrived, the deputies' conduct quickly became unreasonable, he added.​

"It was well established by law enforcement that he was having a mental health episode and should have been dealt with as a medical emergency," Curls said.​

That Lucero was also on meth does not matter, Curls said. Whether the episode was a result of prior mental health issues or drugs, he should have been dealt with the same way, Curls said.​

The confrontation started with three deputies against Lucero, but a fourth arrived later. The deputies shocked Lucero with a Taser about 29 times, Curls said. The situation was also exacerbated when one of the deputies used pepper spray in the closed environment of the home, causing the deputies to suffer the pepper spray's symptoms, as well.​

The incident lasted about six minutes.​

To make matters worse, Curls said, Lucero's parents were in the room, watching the entire episode unfold.​

"I can't imagine a situation more painful that watching your son get beaten to death right before your eyes two weeks before Christmas and have to live in the same home for years after," Curls said.​

But the parents were repeatedly told to leave the home and kept coming back to see what was happening, said Chief Deputy County Counsel Mark Nations. That makes them at least partially responsible for any emotional distress, he said.​

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. — This week a family of a man who was beaten to death by four Kern County Sheriff’s deputies was awarded a $4.5 million judgment in court for his wrongful death, according to a report by the Bakersfield Californian.​

The jury held that the defendants – Kern County Sheriff’s deputies Daniel Willis, Ryan Greer, Angelos Gonzalez and Jonathan Juden – were negligent when they caused the death of Jose Lucero. The deputies and county were also held responsible for the “serious emotional distress” suffered by his parents, Florencio and Lilia, as they saw the incident take place in their home.​

Two weeks before Christmas in 2010, Jose Lucero died after police came to his home and attempted to restrain him as his parents stood watch, the report said. Lucero, a recovering drug addict, resisted arrest and the Kern County jury found that police used excessive force causing him to have a heart attack and die. Lucero was using methamphetamine at the time and his family told authorities he also had mental health issues.​

On the night of his death, Lucero made repeated 911 calls while he was in a delusional state, the report said. Police came to the home and attempted to subdue Lucero with a Taser gun. Lucero was allegedly shot 29 times. Police also used pepper spray inside the home. Six minutes after their arrival, Lucero died of cardiac arrest.​

The family claimed the police officers used excessive force on their son and that watching the incident caused them emotional distress. However, Chief Deputy County Counsel Mark Nations told the Bakersfield Californian that the parents were asked to leave the room, but kept coming back in during the attack to watch the police attempting to subdue their son.​

Jerrit Greer blew a .10 & .11, both over the legal limit. Jerritt's DUI case was still pending when he arrested Joey Porter. Apparently CHP just puts their drunks back on the highway to hunt other drunks while their own DUI's are pending.

An attorney for NFL linebacker Joey Porter, who was arrested early Saturday on misdemeanor charges of drunken driving and battery on a peace officer, expects his client to be cleared on all charges, even though Porter took a breath test that was at or near the legal limit.​

Two twists also came to light Monday: The officer who arrested Porter has a pending drunken driving case of his own, and the first man stopped by officers -- who Porter followed into a parking lot that led to his arrest -- got off scot-free.​

Note what I put in bold red: According to attorney Daniel Rodriguez, Jerrit Greer "may have a history of being overly aggressive."